STATE COLLEGE, Pa. Chicago Bulls Shirts . -- Down at halftime, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo threatened to really leave his listless team behind -- as in an extra night on the road in Happy Valley. "I told them we were staying here New Years," Izzo said. "Everythings closed down here. It would have been a good place to keep them." Truth is, the Spartans were getting on their plane no matter the outcome, and it was only a matter of time before they got rolling against overmatched Penn State. Branden Dawson scored 20 points, Keith Appling had 14 and No. 5 Michigan State clamped down on defence in the second half to beat Penn State 79-63 on Tuesday night. Gary Harris added 13 points and Travis Trice had 12 for the Spartans (12-1, 1-0) in the Big Ten opener for both teams. Dawson keyed a second-half charge to help the Spartans rally from a halftime deficit and win their fifth straight game. "Our halftime wasnt a lot of fun," Izzo said. "What you always hope is that players respond." Did they ever. The Spartans were in total control in the second half, and hit 10 of 20 3-pointers overall to turn this one into a rout. They limited Penn State to 16 points on 5-of-20 shooting in the second half, a sure sign theres a still a huge gap between the programs. "Thats what their team has got to do now, its got to grow," Izzo said. Brandon Taylor had 18 points for the Nittany Lions (9-5, 0-1) and D.J. Newbill scored 17. Newbill had three 3s and 14 points in the first half to keep the upset bid alive. But a second-half shooting funk for the Nittany Lions cost them against the preseason conference favourite. Penn State failed to have an assist in the second half and made only 2 of 9 3-point attempts. "I think we let missing shots dictate our effort," coach Pat Chambers said. "Its unfortunate, because the team I envisioned played in the first half." The Spartans needed Harris to drive the offence and squash Penn States surprising seven-point halftime lead. Harris, the preseason Big Ten player of the year, scored five quick points to open the second half and put the Spartans ahead. But he went to the bench with his third foul only 3 1/2 minutes into the half, leaving the Spartans without their second-leading scorer for a spell. It didnt matter who was in the game for the Spartans, the Nittany Lions kept making 3s as if they were layups. Tim Frazier tied it at 52-all on Penn States eighth 3 (on 14 attempts) -- a stout number after the team missed nine of 11 attempts in the last game against Mount St. Marys. Appling, though, sparked Michigan States long-range game with consecutive 3s for a seven-point lead. Dawson got the job done inside, scoring eight straight points on three layups and two free throws, for a 68-55 lead, all but ending Penn States upset hopes. The Nittany Lions went cold from outside, and Michigan State used 3s and second-chance points off a whopping rebounding edge (45-26). "We all rallied together as a team," Dawson said. Izzo tied Indianas Branch McCracken for fifth place on the Big Ten career wins list with 210. Penn State had its best non-conference record in five seasons and played for 20 minutes like a team capable of kicking off conference play with a shocker. "We know were a good team," Newbill said. "Weve got to become a great team." The Nittany Lions sure were great in the first half, making their 36-per cent 3-point shooting number worthless, hitting one after another to race to a 12-point lead. Newbill made a 3, then followed with a four-point play on the next possession for a 17-9 lead. Taylor hit consecutive 3s for a 25-14 lead that had a small, yet wildly enthusiastic, crowd on their feet. Michigan State appeared to establish its dominance with a 12-0 run to take the lead until Penn State got hot again from 3-point range. Donovan Jack hit PSUs sixth 3 of the half for a 32-29 lead and Newbills third 3 of the half helped the Nittany Lions take a 47-40 lead. The Nittany Lions connected on seven of 12 3-pointers in the half. "They jumped on us," Trice said. "They had a game plan how they wanted to defend us and they executed." Both programs had bigger concerns than the Big Ten opener: No. 4 Michigan State was in Pasadena, Calif., prepping for No. 5 Stanford in the Rose Bowl and the Nittany Lions are in limbo as Bill OBrien decides if he wants to stay loyal to his team or bolt for the NFL. Chicago Bulls Store .J. -- Jaromir Jagr has hit so many NHL milestones this season for the New Jersey Devils that he is starting to downplay them. Stitched Bulls Jerseys . And like the near entirety of last season, Jonathan Bernier and Torontos goaltending tandem is up to the task. https://www.cheapbulls.com/ . According to bodog.ca, Cleveland moved up to grab the best odds to win the Larry OBrian trophy at 4-1 on Friday. By comparison, the Miami Heats odds plummeted from 3-1 favourites before LeBron left, to 50-1.Alan Smith and Niall Quinn discuss Manchester Uniteds 3-1 win over Bournemouth in the final game of the season. Football Special podcast - May 17 Alan Smith and Niall Quinn discuss Manchester Uniteds 3-1 win over Bournemouth. Wayne Rooney, Marcus Rashford and Ashley Young all scored for United as they secured fifth place in the Premier League with three points at Old Trafford. Bulls Jerseys 2020. Listen to all Sky Sports football podcasts here and download via iTunes. Also See: Premier League video Fixtures Table Live on Sky ' ' '